Dance until you can't dance anymore
by EastSeaFishy
Summary: Lee Donghae has just started college. But something's funny about the school's dance program. How will he survive his time at school and what kind of drama will he face? A Super Junior fanfiction with cameo appearances by other artists. EunHae and others.
1. Opening Ceremonies

Disclaimer: I do not own Super Junior or DBSK or SM Entertainment

Lee Donghae has just started college. But something's funny about the school's dance program. How will he survive his time at school and what kind of drama will he face? A Super Junior fanfiction with cameo appearances by other artists. EunHae and others.

Rated M for now since there may be some violence, swearing, suggestive themes later.

* * *

><p>Music echoed throughout the semi-dark practice room. It was a slow ballad. Guitar ornamentations caressed the main piano theme, and a light, underlying drumbeat gave the music its framework. But just as the main singer stepped up to the microphone, the guitarist stopped playing and raised both his hands in frustration.<p>

"This isn't right. It's too simple. We're missing something."

* * *

><p>"Hey!" The young brown-haired boy turned around at the shout. "Henry! You're Henry, right?"<p>

The boy named Henry looked around for the person calling his name. In the distance, he spotted a figure bolting towards him. As he watched, the indistinguishable figure turned into very familiar face.

"Donghae!" He cried happily.

"Hey! You remember me! I was so worried, since orientation was so long ago."

"Haha, how could I forget? It's not like we spent every day hanging out or anything." Donghae chuckled at the younger's sarcasm. "Did you just come in from Mokpo?"

"Yeah, about an hour ago. When'd you get here?"

"I arrived in Korea about a week ago, but I've been living in a hotel up until now. I needed some time to adjust to the massive time difference."

"Yeah, Canada's pretty far. I swear. I'm so glad I ran into you! This school is so big."

"Yeah. Stroke of luck, eh?"

As Donghae and Henry walked down the campus towards the assembly hall, Donghae spotted a few figures in the distance. They weren't walking. They weren't running. It looked a bit like they were dancing, but he couldn't tell for sure. He craned his neck trying to see clearly, but the sun was getting in his eyes.

"Come on, we'll be late!" Henry muttered as he tugged the sleeve of Donghae's shirt. Disappointed, Donghae turned back towards his friend and the two ran towards the auditorium.

* * *

><p>The president's welcome speech lasted for a good two hours. Henry had to keep nudging Donghae to keep him awake. By the time the speech was over, however, Donghae's energy seemed like it had never been gone. Henry laughed as he watched his friend bound out of the building and tumble onto the grass, breathing out a sigh of relief.<p>

"Finally! It's over!"

"You've never been one for stuffy academic lectures, have you?" Donghae smiled up at his friend.

"Nah, I'd much rather do something physical. Dancing, acting, sports… even singing. It's much more entertaining than listening to someone talk to you about what you should be learning."

"I hear you. That's why I'm majoring in instrumental performance. Then I can control where and when I play, and what I learn." Donghae propped himself up on his elbows just as Henry sat down.

"You're majoring in instrumental performance? What instruments do you play?"

"Well, you heard me play piano at orientation, right?"

"Well yeah, we spent hours in that room, messing around with duets."

"I also play guitar, and-"

"Really? Will you play for me?" Henry looked a bit taken aback. But then suddenly, he smiled.

"Sure, let's go to my room, and I'll grab my guitar. I'd rather play outside though – the weather's really nice."

Donghae jumped up.

"Let's go!"

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later, Donghae and Henry sat on the grass just outside the freshman dorms. Henry was strumming quietly on his acoustic, while Donghae hummed along quietly.<p>

"Did you know, Hae?" Henry asked as his fingers continued gliding over the strings.

"Mm…?" Donghae mumbled, immersed in the music.

"This school's musical production facilities are amazing. They have all the equipment any musician could dream of getting his or her hands on!"

"Like what?"

"Microphones, pop filters, amps, high quality cameras, synths… like, everything! I wish I could name them all! I would have liked to reserve a studio and mess around with the equipment, but the recording studios are reserved for upperclassmen…"

"We could take you there if you'd like."

Donghae and Henry looked up at the owner of the high-pitched voice – the newcomer. A male of average height with simply styled auburn hair stood before them, accompanied by a friend with darker hair, who was slightly taller.

"You seem to play guitar really well." The shorter of the two said. "We're looking for a new guitarist to add some depth to our songs. Would you like to join our band?"

Henry looked back and forth between to two, perplexed by the difference in attitude. While the shorter of the two seemed interested, open, and friendly, the brunette looked away from the conversation, cold and quiet. Sensing the confusion, the brown-haired person spoke again.

"Ah, sorry. Let me introduce us. We're sophomores here and we've formed a band with a few other students." He gestured at his friend. "This is Kyuhyun, our lead singer, and I'm the guitarist. My name is Sungmin."

* * *

><p>Donghae looked around in amazement. In all his life, he had never seen a facility such as this. Chrome and stainless steel shone all around him. He wanted to explore, but was so afraid that he might accidentally break one of the foreign objects. One side of the room was covered in stereo equipment. Lights blinked cheerfully out at Donghae, who shifted his gaze to the soundboard on a large table. The table also supported a high-powered computer. On the screen were a few windows of complicated music editing software. Sitting at the computer allowed the user to look through a large, clear Plexiglas window and into the actual recording room in which three sets of microphones with pop filters, a keyboard, and a drum set at the back had been set up. An electric guitar was propped up against the wall of the room.<p>

"This is our studio. We received special permission from the president of the school to use this whenever we please."

Henry looked at Sungmin, stunned.

"How did you get the president to agree to that?"

"Well… our band has been pretty successful. Did you know our school has a policy that gives promising groups special treatment?"

"Yeah…" Henry mumbled, trying to recall something. "I heard that SM Entertainment had recruited a five member group from this school after seeing them perform at the talent show. Dong Bang Shin Ki… or something."

Donghae smiled. Just hearing the name brought back memories.

"What?" Henry asked Donghae, intrigued by his sudden smile.

"Nothing!" Donghae chuckled, smiling sweetly at his friend.

"Anyway," Sungmin continued on as Henry shot Donghae a look of interest before turning back to face his upperclassman, "this policy is pretty recent. In fact, it started last year, after their recruitment. The school hopes that the company will return and continue to recruit its students. This will further bolster the school's reputation."

"That's crazy…" Henry muttered as he watched Kyuhyun enter the recording room to adjust the microphones. At that moment, the door to the studio opened and two students walked in.

"Hey guys!" Sungmin cried happily, hugging the smaller of the two.

"Hyung… I can't breathe." Sungmin immediately released him.

"Sorry Wookie. I'm just so happy. You got my text right? I found us another guitarist!"

"If he's good enough and agrees to join, that is." The taller of the two said seriously. Donghae noted absently that he was rather good looking. Sungmin pouted.

"I heard him playing before, and I think he'd be perfect. Anyway, let me introduce you." Sungmin said. "This serious-looking party-pooper is Siwon, our drummer." Siwon shot Sungmin a look that was plainly ignored. "Ryeowook is our keyboardist and composer. He composes all the songs and manages the recording equipment. I don't think we could have reached our current level of success without him." Ryeowook blushed.

"Nice to meet you." He said.

"Hey, I'm Henry."

"And I'm Donghae. I'm just here to watch on though. Henry's the star of the show." Henry punched Donghae's arm.

Ryeowook chuckled and entered the recording room, followed by Siwon.

"Well, I really think you'd make a great addition to our band, Henry. Why don't we play something for you to see if it perks your interest?"

Henry nodded, and Sungmin stepped into recording room.

"Normally, we don't all play in the studio at once." He called from the door. "But we're not actually recording today, so we'll just leave the door open. That way, you'll be able to hear us."

Once the band members had all taken their positions, Siwon nodded at each member and then started off with a light, but rather complex drumbeat. Ryeowook came in next, with slow chords, graced further by Sungmin's melodic guitar theme. After about four measures, growing in volume, Kyuhyun stepped up to his microphone.

Henry and Donghae looked at each other, watching as he opened his mouth. They had never heard his voice before.

As soon as he started singing, however, Donghae and Henry couldn't take their eyes off him. For someone who seemed so cold and silent in the beginning, his voice was unbelievably rich and warm. At intervals, Sungmin and Ryeowook chimed in. Their singing voices were almost identical in timbre, providing a unified harmony.

Donghae nudged Henry's arm, transfixed by the sight before his eyes.

"I think you should seriously consider joining this group… It could give you some amazing experience and leverage towards your future…"

"Yeah… I don't even think I need to consider…"

* * *

><p>"How did you like it?" Ryeowook asked happily.<p>

"That was… _amazing_!" Donghae gushed. "I can't believe you're students of the same school as us! It was so professional…"

"And Kyuhyun-hyung! Your voice is just… amazing!" Donghae nodded in agreement.

Sungmin, Ryeowook, and even Siwon, burst into laughter as Kyuhyun smiled dryly.

"What?" Henry and Donghae asked in unison, baffled by their strange reactions. "You don't think his voice is good?"

Sungmin snickered playfully.

"It's not that, you see."

"You shouldn't call him 'hyung.'" Siwon added.

"Kyuhyun's actually around your age. He skipped up a year."

"He might even have to call you 'hyung,' you see. When are your birthdays? He was born on February 3rd, 1988." The three band members looked excitedly at Henry.

"Uh… he's still my hyung… I'm '89."

"Aww…" All three members sighed disappointedly.

"What's wrong?"

"We were so looking forward to meeting a freshman that Kyu would have to call 'hyung.' He's so disrespectful to his actual hyungs too…"

Henry looked at Donghae and Donghae shrugged.

"… Well… Donghae… he's '86."

"What?"

"Yeah…" Donghae smiled sheepishly. "I decided to attend college after a taking a couple years off post-high school."

"Really? What made you decide to attend college again?"

"Well… I want to be in the entertainment industry. My childhood dance friend, who was really successful – at this school, actually – suggested that I apply. So I decided to take his advice and applied here…"

"Dance friend? Are you majoring in dance?" Siwon asked, dubiously.

"No, I'm undecided… why?" Siwon looked hesitantly at Kyuhyun, and then back at Donghae pitifully. Kyuhyun shook his head.

"Stay away from this school's dance troupe." Kyuhyun muttered tersely, and then walked out of the studio.

"Sorry. Kyuhyun's a bit bitter about the imbalance in funding… There's also the issue o-"

"The dance troupe he mentioned is one of the other potential groups that receives special treatment?" Donghae asked curiously, accidentally cutting Sungmin off. He was feeling a bit excited at the prospect of being able to dance on stage, and so early in his college life.

"It's the only other entertainment group apart from ours, actually." Sungmin smiled wryly. "But if you're a dancer, Donghae, you might as well go check it out and see if you're okay with it. If you audition and get in, it'll be good for your resume."

"If I'm okay with it…?"

"You'll see what I mean."

"And what's with the imbalance in funding?" Henry asked cautiously.

"The manager of the dance troupe, Heechul, is the son of the CEO of a famous celebrity management company." Siwon said. "In other words, he's very rich. Although the school gives the same amount of funding to both groups, the school has also given him permission to use his own personal funds for the troupe. It's put us at a bit of a disadvantage, you see." Siwon checked his watch. "Anyway, it's getting late, so let's settle this."

"Henry you said you were interested in joining?" Sungmin asked him, smiling playfully, once more.

"Yeah, I think it would be amazing to work with a group like yours!"

"Wonderful! We'll send you an email about our practice schedules and any other information you'd need to know. But for now, tell us a little more about yourself, what you're majoring in, what instruments you play… and stuff like that."

"Uh, well I play piano, guitar, and violin. I'm majoring in instrumental performance – wait why do you need to know my major?"

"Well aside from natural curiosity, knowing your major also allows us to plan our practice schedule around your classes. We'll also know how much time you can put in." Ryeowook said kindly.

"Right…" Henry smiled sheepishly.

"So you'll need a lot of practice time for your major too…" Sungmin muttered thoughtfully.

"Well," Henry said hurriedly, "I can definitely make time for the band." He shuffled his feet, unnerved by the potential problems he foresaw in making the schedule.

"Don't worry about it. Ryeowook's also in music, Siwon is political science, and Kyuhyun… God, Kyuhyun. He's majoring in law with a minor in math. Our schedules are all packed, so our practices usually take place late at night. I hope that's okay with you."

"Yeah, shouldn't be a problem. But what about you, hyung? What's your major?"

"Me? I'm doing visual arts." Sungmin chuckled. "Not nearly as strenuous as law, but still." The room filled with laughter. "It's getting late. You two should head back soon since the first day of classes is tomorrow." Sungmin turned around to close the recording room door, but then paused. "Actually, let's exchange phone numbers first."

Donghae watched as Henry exchanged numbers with the three other members.

"Okay, we need to lock up here, so you two go ahead." Sungmin said, waving goodbye. As Donghae and Henry stepped past the threshold, he added, "And Donghae, feel free to come by any time. We love having friends over!"

"Thanks!" Donghae called back with a smile.

* * *

><p>"You know, I feel like there's a lot of tension between the dance troupe and the band." Donghae muttered to Henry as they quickly walked back towards the freshman dorms. It was getting dark, and both were still a bit unfamiliar with the rather large campus.<p>

"Yeah… Are you going to join the troupe?"

"You think it'll be a problem?" Donghae asked sadly. "I don't want to get on the bad side of Sungmin and his friends."

"Think about your future, Hae." Henry clapped Donghae on the back. "Besides, Sungmin-hyung encouraged you to try out for it, right?"

"True… but honestly, I don't even know anything about the troupe. Where do you think I can find information on it?"

Then something caught Donghae's eye in the distance.

"Actually, never mind. Go ahead, I'll text you a bit later okay?"

"What's going on? Is everything okay?" Henry called, but Donghae had already set off across the campus at a rapid sprint.

Donghae slowed his pace as he approached a circle of light provided by an adjacent street lamp. He noticed that the area was slightly hidden from view by the abundance of trees that littered the area, and thanked lady luck that he managed to catch sight of the otherwise elusive figure. Donghae watched quietly from the edge of the circle as the thin auburn-haired dancer in the center of the light displayed moves Donghae had never even dreamed were possible. The dancer was so engrossed in his dance, moving to the beats from his headphones, that he didn't notice his spectator.

* * *

><p>Author: Eeee! Super Junior in school! I've always wanted to try my hand at writing a story like this. I have no idea how it will turn out though lol.<p> 


	2. Unclear Warnings

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this chapter. Except the cute, eighty-year-old man. Nor do I own SM Entertainment, although I'd gladly wrestle it away from the CEO if I could.

Lee Donghae has just started college. But something's funny about the school's dance program. How will he survive his time at school and what kind of drama will he face? A Super Junior fanfiction with cameo appearances by other artists. EunHae and others.

* * *

><p>As the dancer flipped up into a one-armed handstand, Donghae finally caught sight of his face. It was calm and reserved, not as good-looking as Siwon's, but still quite captivating. Donghae shifted his weight and it was at that moment that the dancer caught sight of him.<p>

The dancer fell gracefully from his handstand and turned to look at Donghae, lazily dropping one headphone from his ear. His eyes were peaceful, but there was just the slightest hint of a glare behind them, as if he were daring Donghae to tell anyone what he had just seen.

"Uh…" Donghae began, mentally slapping himself for being so inarticulate. "That was… really something."

Whatever hidden glares those light brown eyes held disappeared at once. If anything, the dancer looked more embarrassed, vulnerable, than before.

"Thanks." He muttered, glancing down at his shoes. Donghae followed his gaze and noted appreciatively that the dancer had a serious sense of style.

"Are you part of the dance troupe?" Donghae asked curiously, praying that the young man said yes. Instead, the dancer stiffened and his soft eyes hardened considerably. Without a word, he turned around and stomped off in the direction of the sophomore dorms, leaving his stunned spectator alone under the further darkening sky.

* * *

><p>"Ugh, what was that?" Donghae muttered irritably to himself, attracting a few stares as he walked down the hall. After standing there, alone for five minutes, trying to figure out what had just happened, Donghae suddenly realized that without him noticing, the sun had slipped below the horizon, and that he needed to get back to catch some sleep before the first day of classes.<p>

As he put his key in the lock, however, he paused at the voice coming from within his room. It suddenly dawned on him that he still had not yet met his roommate. When he dropped by in the morning to relieve himself of his luggage, he noticed that his roommate's side of the room had already been set up, missing nothing but the roommate.

From the sounds of it, his roommate was on the phone, and not wanting his entrance to awkwardly interrupt the conversation so that introductions could be made, Donghae let his key hang in the keyhole and pulled out his own phone.

"Just got back to the dorms. About to meet my new roommate. I'm a little nervous… Sometimes I think you're lucky you have a single." He texted to Henry. Within a few seconds, his phone vibrated as Henry replied to his message.

"Are you serious? Don't worry about it. I'm sure you'll manage to get along with your new roommate no problem. All you'll be doing is making a new friend, and knowing your personality, it shouldn't be too hard for you." Donghae smiled at the message.

"Thanks." He typed. He paused for a second and listened. It sounded like his roommate's conversation had ended. He quickly pressed the send button on the screen, turned the key, and walked into his room.

The other occupant of the room was sitting at his desk, shiny black hair loosely cut. At the click of the door closing shut, he glanced behind him. Quickly realizing that the only person who could have walked in was the roommate he had yet to meet, he smiled.

"Hi. Sorry we couldn't meet earlier. You're Donghae, right?" His unexpectedly deep voice sent tingles down Donghae's spine. But it only lasted a few seconds.

"Yeah. Kibum?" Donghae asked after he had recovered, picturing the nameplates on the door he was standing in front of just moments before.

"Yeah, it's nice to meet you." Donghae stepped forward and shook Kibum's proffered hand.

"Same here. How was your first day?"

"Nothing terribly special." Kibum muttered as he looked down at the papers in his hand. "How about you?"

Donghae had to stop and think for a moment before everything came rushing back.

"Oh… you wouldn't _believe_ what we went through today…" At this, Kibum slowly dropped the papers he was holding onto his desk, turned to face Donghae completely, and leaned back in his chair with a look of deep interest written on his face.

Maybe Henry was right, Donghae thought. Roommates weren't so bad after all.

* * *

><p>"So your friend got recruited by one of the most popular bands in the school, and you were dumped by a dancer you didn't know."<p>

"Don't say it like that… you make it sound like we were dating." Kibum chuckled softly.

"Sorry, but from the way you described him, you made it sound like you were really interested."

"Well…" Donghae paused for a second. "Yeah. He was a really good dancer." Donghae felt the awkwardness hang thick in the air. Kibum looked at him with eyes that seemed to see past everything, while Donghae wondered what those eyes saw past. As far as he was concerned, that dancer was just a jerk. "Why do you think he acted that way? All I did was mention the dance troupe…"

"Well based on what Sungmin and his friends said to you, it seems like there are some problems with the troupe. Maybe you should go check it out before you start accusing him of being nasty." It wasn't a patronizing suggestion. Donghae looked up and saw that Kibum's soft eyes held genuine concern.

"Yeah… maybe you're right. I guess I'll go look around tomorrow. I should probably get some sleep for now. I think classes start early for me tomorrow."

"Really? What classes are you taking?" Donghae picked up his bag and pulled out the crumpled schedule he had haphazardly shoved in there while running up to Henry that morning.

"I have acting at eight in the morning."

"Building two, room 601?" Donghae looked up in surprise.

"You can see my schedule from there?" Kibum laughed lightly and his roommate's surprise.

"No, I'm an acting major. I'm taking that class too."

"Really? Oh that's great! I've never acted before, so I was getting pretty nervous."

"I heard the professor is really nice, so there's nothing to worry about." Donghae grinned at his roommate.

* * *

><p>Surely enough, the acting professor was as nice as Kibum said he'd be. And furthermore, he was funny, like no one Donghae had seen before. Within the first five minutes of class, he had everyone on the floor grasping his or her stomach in pain.<p>

"All right. I've showed you what I'm capable of. Now it's your turn. When I call your name, come out here and act drunk."

Everyone glanced around and grinned, and Donghae felt perfectly at home.

* * *

><p>The teacher clapped his hands.<p>

"That was very good." He said, as he looked around the room at the fifteen or so students seated on the ground before him. "I find that acting drunk is one of the best ways to dive into this field of performing arts. You can't act well if you have inhibitions, and what is one of the most obvious ways to relieve yourself of those inhibitions?" He smirked as he looked at the dumbstruck faces of his students. "That's right. Down a few glasses of vodka and get drunk as hell. We'll be doing this exercise at the start of every class, and you better not bore me as the semester wears on, so think about new material for your drunken acts as much as you can."

All the students applauded and got up off the floor.

"By the way," he called out over the rustling of bags, "in no way am I condoning the act of getting drunk. Remember acting is all about _pretending_. Seriously, do not get wasted, thrown in jail, and then pin the blame on me. Now that we're clear, off you go!"

Donghae and Kibum left the class, laughter still dancing in the air. Initially, Donghae thought Kibum was more of a serious, reserved kind of guy. And maybe he still was, but he was also much more than just that. When Kibum mentioned that he was an acting major, Donghae almost did a double take. But after seeing his roommate in the center of the studio, lolling around on the floor with his eyes crossed, he suddenly realized that acting was probably the major that suited Kibum best.

"You're really good at acting." Donghae muttered appreciatively. "Give me lessons some time! They must be free of course!" He winked at his roommate and then pounced a few steps ahead. Kibum smiled. "I'm done for the day, so I'm going to go check out the dance troupe! I'll catch you back at the dorms!"

"Okay, see you later." Kibum waved lightly and turned towards the library.

* * *

><p>After a quick stop to his academic advisor, a short old man who by the looks of it was nearing his eighties, Donghae found out that the dance troupe was granted use of the largest studio on campus past five every day. He thanked his advisor, who smiled weakly at the overly enthusiastic student he now had to take care of.<p>

"You should plan a meeting with me at the end of the week so that we can discuss your plans for the next four years." The old man called after him.

"I will!" Donghae called back as he bolted out of the office. "Thanks a lot, sunsaengnim!"

When he stepped outside of the building, Donghae suddenly realized he had most of the day to kill before getting to see the dance troupe. He groaned and pulled out his phone. Kibum said he would be studying in the library, which did not appeal to Donghae at all. He wondered what on earth Kibum could possibly be studying on the first day of school as he selected Henry's name from his list of contacts.

The phone rang three times before Henry picked up.

"Hey! Are you busy?"

"Uh… not particularly…" Henry mumbled almost incomprehensibly.

"Did I wake you?"

"… No."

"Liar."

"Okay, okay. You woke me up but why does it matter? You probably won't let me go back to sleep anyway…"

"Ahaha…" Donghae grinned apologetically, knowing how true it was. "Guess you know me well enough then."

"Yeah. Anyway, what's up?"

"I have to kill all the time between now and five. If I remember correctly, you said your only class on Monday was orchestra around six. So let's go look at the dance studios!"

"I'm a music major though…"

"I know you dance too."

"How?"

"I snuck up on you one day during orientation and saw you popping a little while you were waiting for me on the street."

"Dammit." But Henry could not hide the interest in his voice. "… Alright I'm coming."

"Okay, I'll be waiting in front of the main building!"

Donghae looked at his phone, satisfied. Ten minutes later, a sleep-deprived Henry staggered up to him with mumbled greetings.

"What's up with you?"

"The people in the suite next door to me were playing tuba until 3 in the morning…" He yawned and rubbed his eyes sluggishly. "I didn't get much sleep." He added unnecessarily.

"We'll dance it off!" Donghae chattered, excitement overwriting the sympathy he otherwise would have felt. "I also want to see where the troupe practices!"

"Are you sure they'll be there today?"

"Yeah, my advisor told me that there's _always _someone there."

"Hey," Henry began, face suddenly losing all traces of lethargy, "did you ever figure out what the deal is with the dance troupe?"

"No, but get this. Yesterday, when I ran off-"

"Yeah, I was gonna ask you about that next…"

"-I ran into this amazing dancer. He seemed really chill at first, but when I brought up the dance troupe, he just turned on me and left me standing there alone in the dark!"

Henry stopped walking and looked at his friend with amusement written clean across his face.

"It wasn't funny!" Donghae complained, but Henry just burst out laughing.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, Donghae and Henry stood at the threshold of the dance troupe's practice room, stunned. It was the size of a small gymnasium, with mirrors lining every wall of the room. Four speakers were suspended from the ceiling, one in each corner. The lighting was bright but soft, and the flooring was all nicely polished wood paneling.<p>

"Man… how big is the dance troupe to have a room of this size?" Henry asked, awestruck.

"Actually, why does our school even _have_ a dance room of this size?" Donghae asked. "What kind of dance group could possibly use all this space?"

"I don't know but this is sweet! Are we allowed to practice here?"

"I don't think so… And even if we could, there's a small group of upperclassmen who are coming in about fifteen minutes."

"How did you know that?" Henry asked, looking around.

"There was a time schedule outside on the door."

"Oh. Then which rooms are we allowed to use? It's not like the recording studios, reserved only for upperclassmen, right?"

"The receptionist told me we could use room 519, so let's go!"

* * *

><p>Donghae and Henry danced for two hours straight, battling it out with each other to the music Donghae had brought. By the third hour, both lay on the floor panting.<p>

"Did you seriously plan on spending all the time between ten in the morning and five in the afternoon dancing?" Henry asked incredulously.

"Well," Donghae panted, "I didn't really think that far ahead…"

"You're crazy!" Henry laughed. "But man, I didn't know you could dance like that!"

"Right back at you. Geez, I knew you could dance, but I wish I could pop and glide as well as you…"

"Thanks. But seriously, Hae, what are we gonna do now?"

Donghae paused for a moment as the gears in his head turned rapidly. Then he bolted up.

"You have a gaming console in your room right?"

"Yeah, you wanna give it a go?"

"Yeah!"

* * *

><p>The two spent the rest of their free time in Henry's room lounging around, playing video games, and chatting. By 4:45, however, Donghae was starting to fidget.<p>

"Hey, Henry, come with me?"

"To check out the dance troupe?"

"Yeah… It's looks like such a big thing. It'd be a little intimidating going by myself. Besides, maybe if it perks your interest, you can try out too!" Henry chuckled.

"I think I have enough on my plate, Hae. But sure, I'll come with you. I'm pretty curious myself."

* * *

><p>Donghae and Henry peered into the studio hesitantly, concerned by the lack of music and voices. In the very center of the large room stood one solitary girl. She had straight, long brown hair tied back into a high ponytail with bangs trimmed to just above her eyelids. He facial features were pretty unique, but there was no denying her good looks.<p>

Henry and Donghae looked at each other, confused, and then back to the center of the room. Just as Donghae opened his mouth to voice his question, the girl slowly brought her right leg behind her and pointed it straight up to the ceiling, grabbing the back of the ankle above her head. Donghae's mouth promptly closed as he and Henry just stared at her, awestruck. And if that weren't enough, the girl pulled her ankle down, bending the already extended leg at the knee to a ninety-degree angle, while simultaneously looking up at the ceiling. Donghae and Henry couldn't contain their shouts of amazement, to which the girl quickly dropped her leg and spun around to face the door.

"Can… I help you?" She asked them uncertainly. Donghae noticed that her Korean had a bit of an accent to it. He couldn't quite place what the accent was, however. He stepped forward.

"Yeah. I was thinking about joining the dance troupe, if I audition and get accepted." The girl looked hesitantly at him.

"You don't need to audition, you know. Are you two freshmen?" Donghae nodded for both him and Henry.

"But some of the upperclassmen told us about auditions…"

"Oh, they must have been talking about the performance auditions. I'll give you a rundown of how the troupe works. Anyone who wants to join is allowed to join. Everyone is allowed to attend the classes and learn the choreography, but when it comes time to perform, or if we're taking part in a dance battle, members are selected to be part of the performance group by auditions."

"Are you Chinese?" Henry blurted out. The girl looked taken aback.

"Y-yes. Is it because of my accent?"

"Well, I'm Canadian, but I'm of Chinese descent. So the accent is pretty familiar to me." Henry explained. "Sorry if the question took you by surprise… I'm Henry, by the way."

"Victoria. What about you?" She directed her question at Donghae.

"Lee Donghae."

"Well, Donghae, Henry, it's nice to meet you both. If you are interested in joining the troupe, the first meeting will be tomorrow, here. You should come back again to meet the members."

"How many members are there?" Donghae asked curiously, wondering if he should bring up the boy he saw the night before.

"We have a good group of about eight or nine students who perform consistently and attend every practice. In addition to that, there are about twenty other students who attend less frequently, but still perform well. We have about thirty people who claim they're interested in dance, and have no background… but only about half of them actually bother to come to the meets, and they don't even come to all of them."

"Then a lot of the 'members'," Henry quoted the air, "are not dance majors?" Victoria nodded.

"Why don't the dance majors take part in the troupe then?" Donghae asked. Victoria looked at him uncomfortably.

"Didn't you know? The dance department is the smallest department here on campus… There are only a handful of students who maintain the dance major through all four years of school… So most of the dance majors are already in the troupe…"

"Are you a dance major?"

"Erm…" Victoria nodded again, looking almost a bit ashamed. Donghae, finally getting fed up with all the strange reactions to the major he was seriously considering, looked Victoria straight in the eye.

"Why does everyone act weird when we bring up dance?"

"We really shouldn't talk about it…" Victoria mumbled uncomfortably. "But let's just say that you need to be wary of the head of the dance department, who by chance teaches most of the classes here…" Donghae looked at Henry dubiously, vaguely remembering cutting off Sungmin who seemed to have an important issue he wanted to discuss with Donghae after hearing about Donghae's interest in dance.

"Thanks, then…"

"Sorry." Victoria smiled apologetically. "Hang in there though. The best way to succeed as a dancer at this school is to complete the major. Those who major in something else and dance as an extracurricular activity on the side _usually_ don't make it big." Donghae had an idea of the exceptions she was thinking of. "But just remember, you can always come talk to me if you run into problems. The troupe will meet here tomorrow. Come and visit again."

Donghae and Henry bowed to her and then waved goodbye as they left the studio, questions weighing down heavily on their minds.

"They make it sound like it's really a terrible major…" Donghae mumbled, disconcerted and disappointed. He had really been looking forward to the dance classes he had scheduled for the next day.

"Didn't you say a childhood dance buddy of yours attended here and was pretty successful?" Henry asked. "He was a dance major, right? Why didn't he tell you anything about the major when he suggested that you apply?"

"You make it sound like that was all in the past. Actually, he still attends the school, but he's not really on campus often." Henry looked at Donghae oddly. "And furthermore, he's not a dance major. He majors in history."

"He attends the school but is never on campus…? How can you be successful in school without being on the campus?"

"Well…" Donghae looked at Henry hesitantly. "It's because he's successful that he's never on campus…" From the expression on Henry's face, Donghae gathered that he still did not understand. He sighed and gave in. "Alright, you can't tell anyone this, okay?" Henry nodded. "You know U-Know Yunho, right?"

"From DBSK? The group that got scouted by the entertainment company? Oh wait… no, don't tell me…"

"Yeah, he's the childhood friend I was telling you about."

* * *

><p>Author's Notes: Lol I can't think of anything to write here. My mind is occupied by the lag I get on Starcraft, which is caused by my bad internet. Oh, woe is me.<p> 


	3. First Tastes

Disclaimer: Don't own any of the SM Entertainment artists, nor do I own SM Entertainment.

Lee Donghae has just started college. But something's funny about the school's dance program. How will he survive his time at school and what kind of drama will he face? A Super Junior fanfiction with cameo appearances by other artists. EunHae and others.

* * *

><p>Henry looked at Donghae dumbstruck.<p>

"You're friends with that famous person…" Donghae smiled sheepishly at his friend.

"Yeah… I remember when he first got scouted. He came running to me screaming and jumping. That's when he told me to apply for the school, since he knew I wanted to join the entertainment industry."

"You… You know U-Know Yunho?" Donghae chuckled at the ridiculous phonetics of the question, and smiled patiently, waiting for the news to sink in. "Donghae! You gotta introduce me to this guy! He's a dance _machine_, am I right?"

"Yeah, he's amazing. I'll let you know the next time he comes back, but honestly…" Donghae suddenly looked a bit crestfallen, "meeting with him might be tough – we might have to do it in private, or very late at night. Ever since they joined SME, fans that attend this school swarm around them every time they set foot on campus. And I'm sure it's the same deal off campus too."

"It's probably worse, since there are a lot more people. But I can wait. It's not like Donghae's friend is suddenly going to stop being his friend, right? So just let me know when it is convenient for both him and you. You'd be doing me a huge favor, after all."

Donghae smiled at his friend as the two of them stepped into the freshman dorms.

* * *

><p>At 8:30 the next morning, Donghae slammed his hand down on the fish-patterned clock he had received from his family, inadvertently knocking it to the floor. But the alarm had stopped, and that was all that mattered.<p>

Just as he had started drifting off to sleep once more, a light touch on his back, followed by mild shaking, snatched him off his trail to dreamland and threw him back into his faintly lit dorm room.

"Donghae. Yah, Donghae. Your alarm went off already, don't you have to get up?"

Donghae turned over groggily, barely making out a silhouette by the side of his bed.

"Kibum…" Donghae pouted. "I don't want to get up."

Kibum bent down and picked up his roommate's alarm clock, examining the clock face with interest.

"You like fish?" He asked, attempting to make conversation with his torpid roommate, hoping it would initiate some brain activity and prompt him to get out of bed.

"My name is Donghae."

"Yes, Donghae, I know." Kibum gently retorted, laughter dancing in his voice. "And I want to know if Donghae likes fish."

"Donghae. Dong. Hae. East. Sea." The last two words were muttered in slurred English. Kibum, having already spent some time in the United States, understood them with ease.

"And you're a fish of that sea?"

"I guess so." Donghae sat up, and Kibum smiled.

"Go get washed up. We should probably get breakfast soon, or you might end up in class both sleepy _and_ full. At least give yourself some time to digest."

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, Donghae and Kibum were sitting in the communal kitchen, shared by all the students who lived on their floor.<p>

"What classes do you have today?" Kibum asked, delicately picking at the scrambled eggs they had just cooked a few minutes before.

"Tuesdays and Thursdays are my absolute worst days. Worst and best."

"How can they be both?"

"My classes last all day. But they're also all my dance classes, along with a vocal class that ends just before the dance troupe meets."

"You really like to dance, huh?"

"Yeah. You have no idea how hard it was to pick out which classes to take. In the end, I went with hip-hop and popping, and added a choreography class to get an understanding of how certain styles are utilized in choreographed dances. But I really wanted to learn break dancing too, and I think jazz might have some practicality when doing those 'sexy,'" Donghae waved his arm fluidly, "dances."

Kibum smiled at his roommate, who continued to rant about all the classes he wanted to take. As the clock struck ten, Donghae stopped talking and shoveled the remaining food into his mouth. Then he stood up and extended his hand towards Kibum.

"Give me your plate. I'll wash today, since I still have an hour before classes start."

"You sure? It won't take too long for me either."

Donghae erratically shook his outstretched hand in front of Kibum's face, into which Kibum placed his plate and fork.

"Alright, next time I'll take care of it. I will head off to the main building then, so I'll see you when you get back from classes."

"See you later!"

As Donghae washed the plates, he mulled over all the cryptic information he had received the night before. Victoria had told him that if he really wanted to become a dancer, he should try and stick to the curriculum and complete the major, while also making it sound like the worst major at the school. Donghae shook his head irritably.

"What if I considered singing?" Donghae muttered to himself, voice barely rising above the sound of the rushing sink water. "Or maybe acting? Kibum's in acting so that might be nice." But he could not wrap his mind around the idea. After all, it had to be dance.

He finished up the initial rinse of the dishware, pulled out a sponge, and started scrubbing the plates in a circular motion.

"Today… I have all those classes. After today, I'll know exactly what all my classes for this semester will be like. But I don't have time to see my advisor… Tomorrow…" Donghae paused as he thoughtfully looked up at nothing, trying to remember when his breaks were. "I have a huge break between ten and two. I guess I'll go see sunsaengnim and get his opinion on my schedule and major then. Donghae-ah, hwaiting!" He shook his soapy fist lightly as he cheered himself on.

Donghae placed the wet dishware on the drying rack and ran back to his room, tossing his dance shoes into his duffle bag. After a last look around the small room, he ran out and headed towards the dance building.

* * *

><p>"I am the instructor for this hip hop course. My name is Kim Eun Na. I studied dance first in Korea, and then went abroad to the United States. I lived there for a few years, and then came back to teach here. My current post at this school is the head of the dance department, so it is likely that most of you will have me for more than one class. You may address me as you normally would a teacher, but feel free to call me Kim as well, which was the name I was known by in America."<p>

Donghae stared blankly at the petite woman in front of him. This was the department head he needed to be wary of? Sure, from her initial introduction she seemed a little strict, and very down to business, but as a professor, there was nothing odd about that. Donghae glanced subtly at the rest of the students in the room.

From the looks of it, this was a mixed class. Consisting of only ten students, it seemed that there was at least one person from each grade in the studio. It was easy to tell who was a freshman and who was not. While the upperclassmen looked on, stone-faced, the few other freshmen in the room stared blankly at their young, beautiful teacher. As Donghae continued to look around, he caught sight of something that made his heart stop.

The auburn-haired dancer.

Donghae stared in shock as his brain refused to process the emotions fighting to get out. Donghae felt everything from anger to excitement to self-pity bottled up inside. The dancer, who seemed to feel the stare, shifted his eyes slightly towards Donghae, and upon seeing him, stiffened and looked away.

Caught unaware, Donghae looked down, embarrassed to have received such an unkind reaction. But he was soon distracted by the noise that filled the studio as the rest of the students rose from their sitting positions on the floor and spread out.

Kim walked over to a small stereo system in the front corner of the room and pressed a button. Crystal clear sound started blaring through the speakers as a comfortably rapid hip-hop song opened with its starting beats.

"We'll be doing a few stretches." She called out over the music. Donghae, who was now fully focused on doing his best in class, just missed the uncomfortable looks exchanged between the upperclassmen.

"Okay, follow my lead. We're going to be going through a few poses that may or may not be hard for you. When I tell you to stop, freeze, and I will come around and correct you if necessary."

Donghae struggled a bit as he tried to keep up with the almost yoga-like poses the teacher demonstrated. Her flexibility was almost as great as Victoria's, Donghae noted as he wavered a bit, standing on one leg with his other leg up as high up to the side as it could go.

"Stop."

Every student froze. Donghae watched as the teacher sauntered up to the auburn-haired dancer. Lightly, she grabbed his arm and pulled it just a bit further out, earning her a pained growl and a glare.

"Tch. Same old grouch as you ever were."

Donghae almost lost his balance as he shifted a bit to get a better look. The dancer's face had gone from stony to altogether pissed off. It was a look he had never seen the dancer express before, not that he had really seen the dancer all that much. But even so, the look was unnatural. Somehow, possibly because of that one moment of exposed vulnerability he saw in the dancer his first night on campus, Donghae could not let go of the idea that the dancer's true nature was more relaxed and friendly, and perhaps even shy some of the time.

"But he's just a jerk, remember?" Donghae shook his head and ignored the annoying voice in the back of his mind. Remember Kibum's advice, he told himself. Don't base everything on first assumptions.

He watched as Kim walked around the room, getting up in the faces of the dancers that displeased her. Donghae noticed that her petite figure made it a bit difficult to reach up to some of the taller dancer's heads and arms. Then she stopped in front of him.

"My, what do we have here?" She mumbled, looking him straight in the eye, and then letting her eyes travel around, almost as if she were examining him. Donghae felt a blush creeping up on his face. The way she seemed to single him out embarrassed him to no end. "You seem like a pretty good dancer," she remarked, reaching up to the arm that was extended above his head. Donghae noted uncomfortably that her body was pressed up very close to his own.

"It's the petite stature. Petite stature." His body stiffened as he continued to remind himself silently that the nonexistent space between her body and his was due to her petite stature.

When Kim had finally adjusted his wrist to her liking, she stepped back with a content smile on her face. She continued making her rounds, and as she continued correcting students, Donghae noticed, for the very first time, the very subtle looks of discomfort on the faces of all the freshmen she corrected, and the looks of subdued disgust on the faces of all the upperclassmen. And those expressions of disgust continued on for the rest of the period.

* * *

><p>At the end of class, Donghae breathed out a sigh of relief. As the corrections had continued, the freshman started squirming more and more with each touch they received from Kim. Donghae, however, managed to remain still through all the corrections through sheer willpower. Once they had finished stretching, the rest of class proceeded without any oddities.<p>

As he bent down to pack his dance shoes into his bag, he fidgeted uncomfortably, feeling as if someone were watching him. He glanced towards the door, and with a shock, gawked as the auburn-haired disappeared through the door and down the hall, but not before quickly turning away after the unexpected eye contact. The feeling didn't go away, however, and Donghae turned back towards the front of the studio. Kim was watching him as well, with a very intrigued look on her face. He shuddered a bit, the memory of her body on his bringing a very uncomfortable heat to his face.

_Hang in there though. The best way to succeed as a dancer at this school is to complete the major._

Donghae quickly stood up, leaving before the last member of the class, a freshman by the looks of it, had finished packing up. He did not want to be alone in the room with the teacher.

As he walked down the hall, towards the elevators, he became dimly aware of the warnings grinding away at the back of his head. He was starting to understand why Victoria had cautioned him against the head of the department.

"I'll observe for a bit longer. Maybe I'm just overreacting because of all the rumors I've heard." Donghae muttered to himself as the elevator doors opened with a ding. He rode the elevator, alone, up to the seventh floor where his choreography class was going to be held.

As he stepped into the large studio, he let out another sigh of relief. The professor at the front of the room was not the head of the department. He was a tall African-American man, lithe with supple muscles showing beneath his white wife-beater. Donghae joined the three or so other students who were sprawled out on the floor. He looked at the clock on the wall and sighed. There were still 25 minutes until class started.

* * *

><p>At 1:05, the professor started looking impatient. All the students had already gathered, so Donghae did not know what he could possibly have been waiting for.<p>

"Alright, we'll get started since that dumb br-"

His introduction was cut short by the banging open of the studio door. Another man stood there, panting.

"Sorry bro, I was running a little late…"

The newcomer approached the professor and stood beside him. The two looked similar, both in face and body. The newcomer was just slightly shorter.

"Okay, let's begin again," the professor started, "this is Zane. He is my younger brother. My name is Nic and we'll be your professors this semester. We find that creating choreography is sometimes better and more interesting with more people, so the school has given us permission to teach a joint class, with two professors."

Zane stepped forward just a bit.

"I'll give the introductions. We were born in Virginia, and started break dancing in our sophomore year of high school. After that, we entered college as dance majors and eventually landed a job choreographing dances for some of the well-known American singers, whose music you might currently have on your mp3 players."

"I am also teaching the break dancing class," Nic added, "so if you're taking that, or planning to, I'll be seeing you again."

"After a while, we got an offer to teach at this school, and out of curiosity, we accepted. This class will be partially the study of dance, and partially creating and performing your choreography." Zane announced to the class. "Why don't we get started?"

* * *

><p>The hour passed by quickly, and soon Donghae was sprinting with all his might towards his popping class. He had about five minutes to get there, and the studio was, for some reason, halfway across campus.<p>

"They… couldn't just… put the popping class in… the dance building?" Donghae hissed to himself between pants. He made it to the studio with thirty seconds to spare. In a flurry, he quickly wiggled out of his street shoes and into his dancing pair, throwing the bag to the side and sliding down onto the floor to join his fellow dancers.

In all the haste and confusion, Donghae failed to notice whom the professor was until it was too late. Belatedly, he looked up and saw that he was sitting directly in front of Kim, who was smiling serenely as she surveyed the class.

Hoping that she wouldn't see him, Donghae pivoted subtly in place, averting his face from hers. This class, he noticed, was not much bigger than the last, but strangely, there were only a few students whom he recognized from his hip-hop class.

As he continued to let his eyes drift around the room, he made eye contact with one of the two girls in the class and felt a smile break out on his face.

Victoria smiled back at him encouragingly, waving a hand in greeting, but her attention was soon called back up to the front as Kim stood up from her spot on the ground to start the class.

"This seems to be a combination of my hip-hop and jazz classes," she said as she looked around the room. She caught Donghae's eye, and her smile widened ever so slightly. "I like that some of you are so strong-willed," she continued as she looked at the rest of the dancers. "It's always the strong-willed ones that make the best students."

When she wasn't looking, Donghae slid his eyes back over to Victoria, who seemed to be quietly mouthing something to the dancer next to her. Unconsciously trying to read her lips, Donghae suddenly realized that he couldn't read them at all; whatever she was saying was not in Korean. The boy next to her turned his head slightly, and to Donghae's surprise, looked directly at him. His quiet eyes were gentle and soothing, but his facial expression did not change much at all.

A sharp tap on the head brought Donghae back from his musings.

"Lee… Donghae, am I correct?" Kim asked him, bending down low so they could talk on eye level. "Please pay attention when I am speaking." Donghae bowed his head low in apology and then looked her straight in the eye as she rose and then continued her pacing around the front of the studio.

"Some of you have popping experience, and some of you do not. Because of that, this class may be tougher for some of you than for others. Why don't we start today with the basics, so that I can analyze where you are in order to teach the class with the most efficiency. I want you to get into two rows."

As the students arranged themselves into formation, Kim walked over to the stereo system and put on a loud funk song with strong bass beats. Donghae looked around him. He was in the back corner of the studio. Victoria and the quiet-eyed dancer were standing next to each other at the other end of the room, in the front.

As Donghae let his eyes travel, one student in particular stood out to him. Because they had been sitting on the floor, the height difference was not apparent at first. But the student, two spots down from him, was enormous. With sleek brown hair and large muscular shoulders, the boy stood at around six feet.

Donghae turned back to the front and stared at the boy in the mirror. The more he looked, the more uncomfortable he felt. There was just something about the boy that gave him a bad feeling. Did dancers normally have muscles that big?

"The basic movement of popping is the clenching of muscles. When you tighten your muscles and release them rapidly, it produces a muscle 'pop' that sometimes causes a jerky movement in the muscle that you tightened. This is what it supposed to look like." Kim went through a thirty-second routine, and Donghae couldn't look away. The unflattering preconceptions he had formed about her did not stop him from appreciating _just _how good a dancer his teacher was.

"Now, I want you to follow along with me." For the first half of the class, Kim went through various poses, popping with each offbeat, demonstrating the twist-o-flex and the Fresno. Donghae seemed to find this type of dance less stressful than the yoga-pose stretches from the earlier hip-hop class and felt much more at home.

By the time the clock showed 2:30, Donghae's muscles had started to ache. When Kim finally paused the class, Donghae almost felt a sense of gratitude.

"Good. So far, you all seem to be doing well. Let's see how strong your pops are now. You will go through the routine I showed you at the start of class and I will come around. I'm telling you right now, girls and guys, I _will_ touch your bodies. If you can't take it, don't take the class. The only way I can tell if you are doing this correctly is to feel it."

* * *

><p>Donghae flopped down onto his bed.<p>

"You seem pretty tired." Donghae tilted his head slightly to get a better look at Kibum's face.

"Yeah, three dance classes, and I have my vocal lessons in less than an hour. I'm exhausted."

"Oh yeah, I never got to ask. How did your meeting with the dance troupe go? Did you find anything out about the dancer you saw on the first day?"

"I didn't, and I have to meet the troupe today. Well, the dancer is in my hip-hop class but that's all I know. About the troupe though… Yesterday, I ran into a dancer named Victoria. She seemed to know a lot about how the troupe is run, so I'm guessing she's a senior member. She's in my popping class too." Donghae paused thoughtfully. "But Kibum-ah, it's weird, you know? She's been giving me warnings about the dance department, and today during hip-hop, Kim, the department head, seemed to be getting too close to the students."

"What do you mean?"

"Like, physically. She was all up against them." Donghae shuddered a bit at the memory of discomfort he felt. It just wasn't right.

"But in the popping class, even though she _said_ she was going to feel us up, and with a good reason, nothing seemed odd. I vaguely remember thinking that Kim seemed wary of Victoria's friend, because she spent a lot less time checking his pops than she did with everyone else. And there's also that really tall kid in class. He looks more like a beginner body builder than a college dance major…"

"You're a people watcher."

"Huh?"

"You like to observe people." Donghae scratched his head lightly as he stared up at the ceiling.

"I guess so."

* * *

><p>Within the hour, Donghae was at his vocal lessons, getting to know his teacher and determining what his vocal range was. At the end of class, his professor let him go with Donghae's first written assignment of the year: a required vocal autobiography giving the student's background in music and other interesting facts. Thoughts about his life rampaged through Donghae's head as he rushed towards the cavernous dance room in which the troupe was scheduled to meet.<p>

"Figures my classes would end at the _exact_ time the troupe meets." Donghae mumbled as he hurried towards the dance building.

The practice room was on the third floor, so Donghae bounded up the stairs, too much in a hurry to wait for the elevator. As he burst through the double doors and barreled down the hall, his ears picked up a few voices just around the corner. He slowed to a walk.

"Will you join the troupe?"

Donghae peeked around the corner. To his surprise, it was the quiet-eyed dancer, nonchalantly talking to none other than a pissed off dancer with auburn hair.

* * *

><p>Author's Notes: Sorry if this chapter seems a little off. I had a hard time getting it out - I think this conniving writer's block is starting to worm its way back into me. Hopefully, it won't get further than it already has.<p> 


	4. What a Manager!

Disclaimer: I do not own Super Junior or f(x).

Lee Donghae has just started college. But something's funny about the school's dance program. How will he survive his time at school and what kind of drama will he face? EunHae and others.

* * *

><p>"Eunhyuk, come on. Answer me. This is already your second year here, and you're a dance major. You're one of the two upper class majors who still hasn't joined, and you dance <em>really<em> well."

Donghae nodded to himself around the corner, thinking back to the very first night. So the dancer's name was Eunhyuk. That was a start.

"Get off my case, will you, Hankyung? I don't want to join this messed up troupe of yours. And tell your manager friend to get off me."

Donghae stepped out around the corner, curious enough to intrude upon the conversation, which was taking place just down the hall from the troupe's studio. As he did so, he got a closer look at the situation. The quiet-eyed dancer, Hankyung, was calmly talking to Eunhyuk in a voice that matched his eyes, while Eunhyuk seemed to be getting more and more irritated by the second. Upon seeing Donghae, Eunhyuk froze.

"Can I help you?" Hankyung asked gently as he turned to face Donghae. When they made eye contact, a look of recognition lit up Hankyung's face. "You're the freshman from the popping course. Victoria was telling me a bit about you at the start of class."

"Yeah… Sorry to intrude, but is the troupe meeting now?" Eunhyuk quickly seized the chance and abruptly stormed down the hall.

"Eunhyuk!" Hankyung called after him. His cry was ignored. "Ah, well. It's okay. It always ends like this. I'm Hankyung, by the way. I'm the head of the dance troupe. It's nice to meet you."

Donghae shook his hand.

"Lee Donghae." Donghae thought carefully about his choice of next words. "I'm curious about the troupe, but unsure if I want to commit yet. Do you mind if I just hang around today to see how things are run?"

"Of course not. You're welcome to stay and observe for as long as you need to before making your decision. We're going to start in about five minutes. You should come in."

Hankyung opened the door to the studio and the two of them walked inside.

"Geng!" Victoria bounded up to them and quickly mumbled something in a language Donghae didn't understand. It must have been Chinese. Then she spotted Donghae and smiled. "Glad to see you made it here!"

Donghae grinned back.

"I'm excited to see the kind of dance you guys do. But… Hankyung-ssi, you understand Chinese?"

Hankyung laughed genially.

"You don't have to be so polite. Just call me Hankyung, or Geng if you prefer – it's fine. And yes, I am a Chinese international student, like Victoria here."

"You're an international student? Your Korean is virtually flawless!" Hankyung smiled. "Oh… and what's 'Geng'?" Donghae asked.

"My Chinese name is Han Geng. As for my Korean, my parents are close friends with the director of this school. His grandchildren were my childhood playmates so my Korean isn't too bad."

There was a pause in the conversation, and then Donghae asked the question that had been weighing down on his mind ever since he set foot on the third floor.

"Do you mind if I ask about… Eunhyuk, was it?"

"Ah… Yes go ahead. He's a character, isn't he?"

"Yeah. I saw him dancing one night on campus, and he was… very charismatic. When I first spoke to him, he seemed really gentle, but then when I mentioned the troupe, he turned into a jerk. What did he mean when he said your troupe was messed up?"

"Hm… Really, I think he's being unfair. There's nothing messed up about it, honestly." Hankyung scratched the back of his head. "Eunhyuk just has some problems with the management of the troupe…" Donghae felt that it would be impolite to press the management issue any further, so he decided instead to focus on Eunhyuk's character.

"Can you tell me a bit more about him?"

"Why are you so interested in him?" Hankyung asked kindly, his quiet eyes doing just what Kibum's did the very first night – penetrate through all facades, even though Donghae still couldn't figure out what they seemed to be seeing through.

"I think he's very interesting. I also thought that maybe it'd be nice to be friends with the first dance major I met since coming here…"

"Eunhyuk really isn't a bad person. When I first met him in his freshman year here, he was very gentle, amicable." Hankyung glanced over at Victoria, who looked on sadly. "He was like you – considered joining the troupe. He was just about committed, but at that moment, he suddenly found a new intense dislike for the troupe, as well as the dance department in general."

The doors to the studio burst open at that moment, and all heads swiveled in that direction.

"Ah, the manager's here. We should get started." Hankyung smiled to Donghae. "The rest is Eunhyuk's business, really. If you want to know more, you should ask him directly."

Donghae nodded dumbly, unable to form words due to the shock of such a preposterous idea. Eunhyuk seemed to hate him. How would he ever be able to speak to the dancer about such personal issues?

Hankyung walked up to the front with Victoria, chuckling quietly at the mixed look of confusion and hopelessness, with just a hint of outrage, on his dongsaeng's face.

"I think it will be an interesting year." He muttered to his friend. Victoria glanced back at the boy who was standing as still as a stone at the back of the studio with a sympathetic grin on her face.

"He's very interesting. Not like any of the other dancers here. I want to see how he ends up approaching a dancer as confused as Eunhyuk. It's a shame that Eunhyuk dislikes the department so much, despite his passion for dancing."

Hankyung and Victoria stopped besides the manager who had just entered the studio and turned to face the room's occupants.

"Attention, please!" Hankyung called out over the babbling of the students. "We're going to get started. Welcome to the first meeting of the year. My name is Hankyung. I am the head of the dance troupe. I'll give a bit of background information to the new students here. I was born in China. My parents are close friends with the school's director, so when I reached college age, I decided to apply for this school. I am currently a fourth year dance major." He turned to Victoria. She stepped up a bit.

"My name is Victoria. I am a Chinese international student, and like Hankyung-ssi here, I am a fourth year dance student. I am the in-studio manager for the troupe, so if you ever need advice or are having problems, feel free to come see me."

Victoria stepped back, and Hankyung called out a name.

"Shindong! Come up and introduce yourself."

One of the upperclassmen in the room rose from the floor and walked up to the front.

"I am Dong-dong-di-dong Shin Donghee." He sang, patting his large tummy, drawing much laughter from the students. "You can just call me Shindong. I am a third year dance major at this school and the main choreographer for the troupe." He bowed and went back to his seat on the floor, just as the manager stepped up to the front.

"I hear Shindong's gonna be the head of the troupe once the fourth years graduate." Muttered one of the students to Donghae's right. Donghae looked on with mild interest. He was curious to see how the humorous Shindong's choreography had brought the renowned dance troupe to the top of the school.

The manager cleared his throat and Donghae's attention snapped back up to the front. He had never really looked at the manager before, but now seeing him in plain sight, Donghae found him just a little queer. Noting the unique style of clothing the manager sported, Donghae looked on with a smile. The manager's hair was long and black, tied back into a high ponytail. His face was small, and quite good-looking.

"My name is Kim Heechul. I am the manager for this dance troupe. I take care of the finances and performance negotiations within and outside of the school. I will be one of the judges to pick the dancers that will perform when the time comes, so make sure you do your best to please me." He looked around at all the students, taking in the silence. Donghae had a sneaking suspicion that he was basking in his authority. "Newbies. Line up at the back. The rest of you will begin practice."

The sudden bustling in the studio set the atmosphere in motion. In an instant, it went from quiet to rolling, like a boulder suddenly reaching the tipping point, and then shooting down a hill, constantly gaining momentum. Soon, there was music and shouting as the upperclassmen began learning Shindong's newest choreography. The excitement was uncontainable. To his disappointment, however, Donghae realized he would not be able to watch; the somewhat eccentric manager was demanding the attention of all the first years.

Heechul paced along the row of freshman, muttering to himself. Then suddenly, he froze, as if he suddenly realized something.

"Has anyone seen Eunhyuk?" He screamed out over the music. Immediately, everyone in the studio stopped moving and looked at him incredulously.

"Come on, Hee. You know he would never come here if he could help it." Hankyung called back from the front, neglecting to mention Eunhyuk's unusual visit, which had just stopped short of studio doors a few minutes before.

"Geez that brat. I'm going to hunt him down and make him mine."

"Hee…" Hankyung groaned helplessly. "You're so hard to deal with, there's no way he'd go for you."

"Whatever."

Heechul turned back to the freshmen and glanced at them. Many of the students stiffened like frightened rabbits.

"All of you want to join the troupe?" He received many frantic nods. Then Donghae realized that the manager was staring at him, the only one who hadn't nodded and instead was zoning out as he watched the rest of his peers show their enthusiasm. "Okay, just wanted to make sure. Go join the rest of them. My faithful servants will teach you everything you need to know. If I find that you are not doing your best, I will kick you out. Remember that. You." Heechul looked straight at Donghae. "Come here."

Donghae wandered slowly over to the thin manager, who was now leaning against the back mirror.

"Why didn't you nod?" He asked, draping his arm around Donghae's shoulders pulling him to the ground. Donghae sat down, cautiously keeping his distance as best he could.

"I am not sure I want to join the troupe yet, hyung." Donghae said, carefully picking his words. "I want to see if I will really enjoy dancing here before I join."

"Ahh…" Heechul muttered, tapping his forehead with his free hand, face showing mock frustration. "You're _just_ like that brat Eunhyuk." He paused thoughtfully. "I like you."

"Excuse me?"

"Yeah. You heard me. Join the troupe. I'll give you the best treatment. You will definitely like it here."

"Why are you trying so hard?" Donghae asked, curiosity overtaking his caution. "You've never even seen me dance. How do you know _I'll_ be good for the _troupe_?"

"Doesn't really matter." Heechul shrugged. "You're good looking, I'm good looking. We need to stick together." He pulled the young dancer closer. "Besides," he whispered into Donghae's ear, "I'm sure you'd also make the popularity of the troupe shoot up even more. Then we can really have some fun. Girls love good looking guys." He leaned back. "Although you're not as good looking as me!" His barking laughter echoed throughout the studio. A few of the new students glanced back tentatively, but apparently, all the upperclassmen were more than used to his behavior, and continued to concentrate on the task before them.

"I'll… consider it." Donghae muttered, still unwilling to commit. In the back of his mind, a small something told him that if he joined the troupe immediately, all chances of befriending the auburn-haired dancer would be reduced to none. He lapsed into careful consideration of that problem, while finally getting to watch Shindong's creative choreography. He was so absorbed he almost didn't mind the uncanny skinship he was getting from the manager. Almost.

* * *

><p>"What a manager he turned out to be!" Donghae complained as he flopped down into Henry's fluffy comforter. The dance troupe had finished its practice and Donghae and Henry were just about to go grab dinner. Henry was just getting dressed.<p>

"Have you been working out?" Donghae asked, eyeing the bare muscular arms Henry sported under his sleeveless shirt.

"Yeah. My arms got tired from holding the violin, which is so not cool for an instrumental performance major."

"Haha you didn't have to go _that _far though. I don't think you need meatballs on your arms to play violin, you know."

Henry chuckled as he glanced back to see his friend sprawled across his bed.

"You ready?"

"Yeah." Donghae jumped off the bed and made his way towards the door. Then he paused and pulled his phone out. "Do you mind if I invite my roommate? He's pretty cool – I'd like for the two of you to meet each other."

"Sure, it's always nice to meet new people."

* * *

><p>Donghae looked on in confusion as Henry and Kibum conversed lightly in English over their meal. He was sure the two of them were doing it on purpose, so he pouted and stuck his hands out over the table, grabbing their attention.<p>

"Not fair." He stated simply. "I don't understand English!"

Henry grinned slyly at Kibum, who smiled back mischievously. Who knew serious Kibum had such a playful side?

"Guys!"

"Okay, okay." Henry resigned. "We'll stop teasing you, Hae."

"Sorry, it's just so much fun." Kibum smiled at his petulant roommate, whose expression softened.

"So," Henry continued, "has anything interesting happened?"

"Well, I was telling Henry about this earlier," Donghae said, addressing Kibum, "but I went to the troupe today, and got to see all the members. Apparently, Victoria is the in-studio manager. But that's not the craziest thing. I seriously think there's some deep rooted story that involves the auburn-haired dancer, whose name is Eunhyuk by the way, Hankyung, the leader of the troupe, Heechul, the manager of the troupe, and the department of dance as a whole… I've been wondering how to go about talking to Eunhyuk about all this…"

"Are you sure it's a good idea to get involved?" Kibum asked cautiously. "It _is_ somebody else's business."

"Hankyung told me it would be a good idea to try and talk to him." Donghae said simply, as if that closed the matter to all discussion.

"He's actually quite obsessed with the guy." Henry whispered to Kibum in English. Kibum nodded.

"I guess it would be pointless to try and advise him against having anything to do with him." Kibum muttered in English, a bit less inconspicuously.

"Guys!" Donghae pouted again. "Stop with the teasing…"

"Okay, sorry." Henry smirked.

* * *

><p>That night, Donghae went to the dance building, intending to practice what he had seen at the troupe, since he really did not get much of a chance to actually dance with the manager hanging onto him. Dinner with Henry and Kibum had dragged on until around 10 pm, not because they ate slowly, but just because as time passed, they found more and more to talk about.<p>

But when he walked into the dance building, all the lights were dimmed to the lowest, and there was no one at the reception desk.

"Aish…" Donghae muttered. He glanced around and spotted a piece of paper on the door. The dance rooms closed at 10, it said. But when Donghae listened very carefully, he could hear and feel the extremely light vibrations of strong bass beats that seemed to come from a few floors up.

Slowly, Donghae walked up the stairs, trying to follow the sound of the bass. As he walked, he found himself heading along a familiar path – one that he had just followed earlier that day. As he passed through the double doors, he looked down the hall that led towards the dance troupe's dance room.

Light shone through the windows and through the cracks under the doors. He approached quietly, although he doubted whoever was inside would be able to hear him over the pounding music. Standing up on his toes, Donghae peered in and was immediately transfixed.

The fact that _Eunhyuk_ was using the dance troupe's room registered numbly in the back of his mind as he quietly slipped in through the unlocked doors and inconspicuously sat down at the edge of the room.

The two occupants of the room, each in their own trance, stared at the dancer's reflection in the mirror as his body flowed with the music. They seemed lost in time until the song came to an end and Eunhyuk's glazed over eyes regained their shine and he became aware of his surroundings once more.

Almost immediately, Eunhyuk's eyes snapped to the reflection of the unwelcomed intruder, who had let himself in.

"What are you doing here?" Eunhyuk hissed, seething with anger. How dare this person let himself in.

"Does it bother you if I watch?" Donghae asked, still transfixed by the sight before him.

"I don't need some suck-up watching me practice." Eunhyuk growled as he spun around and pointed to the door. "Get out." Donghae stood up, but instead of walking out of the studio, he walked towards the angry dancer.

"How did you get access to this room so late at night?" he asked. Eunhyuk just stared at him, dumbfounded, before snapping back to his senses and roughly bumping Donghae out of his way as he stormed towards the studio door, not even bothering to gather his things.

* * *

><p>Author's Notes: Come on Hyukkie. Hae totally has a thing for you. Stop being so mean.<p> 


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